Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus such as a digital copy machine, a multifunction peripheral, and a laser printer, and more specifically, to tilt control of an operation unit.
Description of the Related Art
Some image forming apparatuses include operation units arranged on upper portions of housings. The operation unit includes a liquid crystal screen on which information is displayed or data is input. In a case where the operation unit is arranged in a higher position, a wheelchair user or a short user, for example, may have difficulty in looking at information displayed on the liquid crystal screen or difficulty in performing input operation due to poor visibility of the operation unit. Accordingly, there is an image forming apparatus including a tilt mechanism by which an angle of an operation unit can be manually adjusted to enhance visibility and usability of the operation unit. In recent years, a mechanism for automatically adjusting an angle of an operation unit has been discussed. Such a mechanism adjusts an angle of the operation unit to an angle at which a user can readily use the operation unit. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-81248 discusses an image forming apparatus that automatically rotates an operation unit when power of the image forming apparatus is turned on and off.
In the image forming apparatus automatically rotating the operation unit to a predetermined position when the power is turned, the operation unit may not be automatically rotated in some cases. Such a case occurs, for example, when a load is applied to a rotation mechanism by a user hand placed on the operation unit, or a large book document placed on a document reader unit interferes with rotation operation of the operation unit by projecting into the operation unit. If the automatic rotation of the operation unit continues even in such a case, noise is generated or the book document is damaged.